The Encyclopedia ot the Gothic

摘要

As a genre, the Gothic has always been characterised by its eclecticism and fluidity. As Anthony Mandal, one contributor to this new publication in the Wiley-Blackwell Encyclopedia of Literature series points out, the mode engages religion, myth, science, philosophy, art and music as well as literary texts. Not only that, but the very meaning of the term "Gothic" has been critically contested and has evolved and diversified, so that, as Hughes, Punter and Smith admit in their introduction, any endeavour at organization into an encyclopedia must remain a highly provisional one. This book is the first attempt at a comprehensive coverage since the Encyclopedia of Gothic Literature (Snodgrass, 2004), which, the editors argue, did not include the "diverse range of subjects and national contexts" discussed here. This is a bold claim, but one validated, mostly, by the new work's sheer size and impressive range.